Islamist-led foreign policies: what implications?

The sweeping electoral victories of Islamist political parties are set to shift the terms and priorities of European engagement with Arab states. A recurrent theme in Europe’s policy debates has been the concern that democratic elections in the Arab world would bring governments to power that are hostile to key Western interests. Indeed, fears that new governments may upset the basis of the region’s fragile security arrangements have been a major driving force behind the tacit EU and US support for Arab autocrats. As democratic elections across North Africa begin to bring a new political class to the fore, international partners are wondering what to expect.